Hobby Lobby, the Oklahoma City-based retail giant, announced Wednesday it has reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice to forfeit thousands of ancient artifacts the government says the company illegally imported from the Middle East.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York, Hobby Lobby in about 2009 began importing thousands of ancient clay tablets, cylinder seals and other cultural items that were shipped to Hobby Lobby locations in Oklahoma.
The government alleged that the items originated in what is now Iraq and were imported in violation of federal law.
Shipments were made without proper documentation of the country of origin and in containers that falsely described the contents as ‘ceramic tiles’ or ‘clay tiles (sample),’” the government said.
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In some cases, the materials were falsely labeled as originating in Turkey, the government said.
In accepting the agreement, Hobby Lobby has “accepted responsibility for its past conduct and agreed to take steps to remedy the deficiencies that resulted in its unlawful importation of the artifacts,” the government said.
“Hobby Lobby has agreed to the forfeiture of all of the artifacts shipped to the United States,” the government statement said. Hobby Lobby also agreed to pay $3 million and submit quarterly reports to the government on any cultural property acquisitions for the next 18 months.
Hobby Lobby President Steve Green said in a statement: “We should have exercised more oversight and carefully questioned how the acquisitions were handled.
“Hobby Lobby has cooperated with the government throughout its investigation, and with the announcement of today’s settlement agreement, is pleased the matter has been resolved.”
He said Hobby Lobby was “new to the world of acquiring these items and did not fully appreciate the complexities of the acquisitions process. This resulted in some regrettable mistakes.”
“The company imprudently relied on dealers and shippers who, in hindsight, did not understand the correct way to document and ship these items,” Green said.
He said that “at no time did Hobby Lobby ever purchase items from dealers in Iraq or from anyone who indicated that they acquired items from that country.
“Hobby Lobby condemns such conduct and has always acted with the intent to protect ancient items of cultural and historical importance.
“We have accepted responsibility and learned a great deal,” Green said. “Our entire team is committed to the highest standards for investigating and acquiring these items.”
Green said developing a collection of historically and religiously important books and artifacts about the Bible is “consistent with the company’s mission and passion for the Bible. The goals were to preserve these items for future generations, to provide broad access to scholars and students alike to study them, and to share the collection with the world in public institutions and museums.”
The Green family was the inspiration for the creation of the Museum of the Bible being developed in Washington, D.C., and artifacts from the Green collection are expected to be in the museum.
A government spokesperson said that “the protection of cultural heritage is a mission that HSI (Homeland Security Investigations) and its partner, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, take very seriously.”
